Is America the best country in the world? It is for me, because it's my country, and I'm at home here. But is America--objectively--the best country in the world? What do the French, Germans and Japanese think?
One thing I learned from philosophy is that if a question or statement is hard to respond to, it might not be meaningful. We hear from conservative and liberal politicians that America is exceptional, the best country in the world, better than all the other countries, which is like saying, "My father can beat up your father." There are no accepted criteria to be used in establishing which of the roughly 200 countries is best. There is, in fact, no such thing as an objectively best or worst country.
When I hear a President claim that America is the best country, I'm troubled by the vacant thinking behind the assertion. Is that what voters want to hear? Childish nonsense?
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